The Chinese New Year is coming soon. We put up Spring Festival couplets, stick blessing characters and hang red lanterns. This year there are a few little ones who are helping in name but actually making trouble, making it even more lively.
Xiao Yao sat on a chair by the window, listening to everyone laughing and playing, a smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. Life is so good now, the family is so happy, and she really hopes it will last forever.
Xiao Yang usually stayed in the study, but today he was dragged out by his brother and younger brother. However, he looked for every opportunity to go back inside. Even if he didn't go to the study, it was better than freezing outside. When he saw his sister, he knew his chance had come.
"Ping An, can Third Brother play with you?"
There are not many times when the third brother can take the initiative to say "OK", and he is the only one in the family who does so, so of course he has to respond positively.
Xiao Yang meticulously peeled nuts for his sister, fed her snacks, and played with her in clay figurines. Although he spoke very little, he was more attentive than anyone else. With him by his side, his sister never had to ask for help, handing her a handkerchief or holding her shoes. He always saw and reached out before anyone else.
There were laughter and joy outside, and the house was warm and harmonious. General Xiao and his sons were preparing for the ancestor worship, while Qin led her daughter-in-law to prepare a sumptuous dinner. Everywhere was a busy scene.
Only Xiao Yang and Xiao Yao remained calm and composed, undisturbed by the outside world.
General Xiao and Xiao Jingkang each sent people to visit Xiao Yao, fearing that she would be left out. General Xiao was very dissatisfied with his son and daughter-in-law. Why couldn't his precious granddaughter go out when everyone else could? He also threatened that if they showed favoritism again, he would take care of his granddaughter himself.
It was Chinese New Year, and Xiao Jingkang was afraid that his father would find out, and then he would have no chance to celebrate the New Year. So he said that he was afraid that his daughter would be cold, so he didn't allow her to go out. As expected, he was glared at, but it was better than letting the truth be revealed.
After finishing their work outside, Xiao Lang and Xiao Yi went to reunite with the elders. As representatives of the grandchildren, they had many things to attend to. Xiao Rui finally got the chance to have fun, and he was so eager to stay outside that he naturally found all kinds of excuses not to go back. The remaining three wanted to resist, but Xiao Yi said, "Are you all so busy having fun that you don't care about safety?" and they obediently went into the house.
The Xiao family was the most complete this year. In previous years, some members were missing, leaving a sense of regret on what should have been a reunion. This year was very different; not one was missing, so everyone was in an especially joyful mood.
Qin, in particular, was very satisfied. Her husband had returned to Beijing, her youngest son had agreed to stay, and the Fang family's affairs had been resolved. She was so satisfied that she drank two more glasses of wine than usual.
After dinner, the younger grandchildren were sent to bed. The children were too young to stay up past midnight, so the others gathered together to chat and stay up all night. Since Xiao Yuan's first birthday was in two days, the women's topic naturally turned to the "Zhuazhou" ceremony.
Yuan Yutong felt sorry for delaying her sisters-in-law from returning to their parents' home last year, so she didn't plan to hold a big celebration for her daughter this year.
"Although it's not convenient to hold a big celebration as Ruyi's one-year-old birthday ceremony coincides with the Chinese New Year, we should still have a lively occasion as a family. We can't listen to you on this matter." Tong Mingyu rejected Yuan Yutong's proposal.
"My sister-in-law and I are not new brides, so we don't have to go back to her parents' home on the second day of the New Year. It's just a day or two late, what's the big deal!" Li Jiaoying also disagreed.
Tong Mingyu and Li Jiaoying knew that their sister-in-law must have made this decision because her parents were away and it was the second day of the Lunar New Year, so they didn't want to bother everyone. Once you're married, you're family. Even after years of being together, her sister-in-law was still so distant. She could go back to her parents' home anytime, but Ruyi only did the "Grab the One" ceremony once in her life. Why would they care or get angry about it?
Qin also objected, making a rare move. She insisted on carrying out her granddaughter's one-year-old celebration. It didn't have to be extravagant, but it had to be lively. The men had no objections either. Xiao Jingmin stood up, bowed to his two sisters-in-law, and apologized, "I'm sorry to have troubled you."
"If we keep talking like this as a family, it will become alienated." Tong Mingyu quickly returned the greeting.
After setting off firecrackers and staying up late, the family welcomes the arrival of the new year together.
The next morning, the four grandchildren donned new clothes and went to Ninghe Hall to pay their respects to their elders. As they handed out lucky money, everyone recalled Xiao Yao's behavior the previous year and looked forward to her performance today. General Xiao readily handed the lucky money to his granddaughter. Qin Shi smiled, but remained silent, waiting for her granddaughter's reaction.
"Why are you making things difficult for my granddaughter?" General Xiao asked in confusion.
"You'll know in a moment." Qin answered mysteriously.
Xiao Yao didn't understand what her grandmother meant at first, but her second brother kindly reminded her by whispering in her ear, "What did you do during the Spring Festival last year?"
Xiao Yao, who was suddenly enlightened, couldn't help but sigh. If no one reminded her, she would have forgotten what happened last year. New Year's greetings should be original. Grandma, can you give a child a difficult question on New Year's Day?
"Grandma... Happy New Year." After saying that, Xiao Yao thought to herself with self-mockery that if things continued like this, she would probably only be able to speak English during the next New Year.
"Happy New Year!" Qin happily gave General Xiao the lucky money. It was so novel and special. General Xiao was upset. He'd always been the one to enjoy the privilege of having his granddaughter, but now he could only watch someone else get it. He regretted his quick decision. Xiao Yao couldn't bear to upset her grandfather, so she sweetly said "Happy New Year" and gave him a resounding kiss. General Xiao was indeed happy, and his mood immediately escalated to euphoria.
How could the other people in the family miss this opportunity? They all came forward to ask for kisses. Xiao Yao was busy for a long time to fulfill every request and satisfy everyone's wishes. It was the New Year and she wanted to make everyone happy. But it was hard for her. She was so busy that she broke out in a sweat. Her physical condition was still too poor!
Because it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, the men with official positions, led by General Xiao, wore court robes; the female members of the family, led by Qin, dressed according to their rank and rode in carriages into the palace to pay their respects.
Xiao Jingyan became the most senior person among those who stayed at home and was entrusted with the important task of looking after the children. The handsome young man with a face full of resentment wailed in his heart, asking an unmarried man to look after children, including four infants, was too much!
Based on the principle that if I am unhappy, everyone will be sad together, Xiao Jingyan made the following assignments: Xiao Lang will be responsible for taking care of Xiao Qi, Xiao Yi will be responsible for taking care of Xiao Jun, Xiao Yang and Xiao Rui will take care of Xiao Yuan, and he will be assigned to his little niece Xiao Yao.
He thought he had made very good arrangements and was just about to praise himself when he encountered strong protest from Xiao Yuan. He said that anyone who wanted to separate him and his sister was a bad guy. The little guy twisted his body and hummed loudly, then ran towards Xiao Yao without looking back, followed by two little nannies who didn't feel that they had failed in their duties.
It wasn't long before the four children reunited, and they brought a few older ones along. Xiao Yao looked at her fourth uncle sympathetically, but saw that he was no longer as carefree and complacent as before, and looked completely devastated. She turned her head, covered her mouth with her hand, and laughed softly.
What a perfect plan, what a humane arrangement, why didn't it work? Xiao Jingyan said he couldn't accept this result, but the reality was right in front of him, and whether he accepted it or not, it couldn't change the facts. It seemed that he had no talent for coaxing children. Aside from his niece's safety, he would definitely stay away from children in the future, and he also felt resistance to becoming a father.
Qin would never have thought that just letting her son look after the child for one day would give him such thoughts. If she had known this was the situation, she would probably never let him do this no matter what.
Xiao Lang and Xiao Yi couldn't help but laugh, secretly, of course. They understood Fourth Uncle's feelings, because no man wanted to babysit a child all day. Considering Fourth Uncle's heavy loss, they decided to share some of the childcare responsibilities today.
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